


Roses.

by LadyWinnelynPooh



Category: Phantom of the Opera (2004), Phantom of the Opera - Lloyd Webber
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Older Man/Younger Woman, inspired by Colonel Brandon and Marianne Dashwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:54:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22655857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyWinnelynPooh/pseuds/LadyWinnelynPooh
Summary: What if everything was different?
Relationships: Raoul de Chagny/Christine Daaé
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

1. _First Meeting._

In this world, it's Gustave Daae that Raoul de Chagny is friends with, as Raoul is 40 years of age, and 10-years-old Christine sees him as an uncle. Still, he is the first to dive into the waves to fetch her scarf, and she rewards him with a kiss on the cheek.

2. _Hannibal._

When Christine sees Raoul again after ten years, she is a beautiful flower of a girl, and he is thirty years older then her. This time, when Meg asks her if she knows the new patron, Christine does not say they were childhood sweethearts. Instead, she says, ''He was like an uncle to me.'' and Meg remarks how handsome he still is at his age. His smile-there is something in his smile that pulls at her heart.

3. _Think of Me._

When Christine sings, Raoul recognizes her instantly, and heads out to buy her a bouquet of flowers-lilies, and pink roses. He smiles, and goes along with the managers to her dressing-room, and leaves when they are not looking. She sits there, clad still in her fairytale princess-like dress of white satin overlaid in star-studded tulle,holding a rose in her hands that seems very likely from an admirer.

''Hello.'' he begins, and she turns to look.

''Is it- oh, it's good to see you!'' she exclaims and runs to embrace him.''Uncle.'' she teasingly calls him.

''There's no need for that anymore.'' he says, and presents the flowers to her.

''Oh, they're beautiful!'' she sniffs them, smiles at him. She walks over and places them in a vase, arranging them nicely. Then she turns and waits, hands clasped in front of her.

He smiles.'' You sang beautifully tonight. I think the angels would have wept to hear you.''

Christine smiles. ''Is that all?'' She looks as if she expects him to ask her out to dinner, and indeed, if he were a younger man, he would have done so. But he is not young anymore. He knows what could happen to her reputation if he does. So he merely bids her good-night, and Christine must take comfort in the nearness of her Angel.

4\. _Il Muto._

As Raoul heads to confront the managers about the letter he received, he is stopped by a masked figure. While he cannot see the face, he wonders who the man is to talk to him.

''Who are you, sir?'' he questions.

''No one at the moment.'' the man replies, his voice low. ''What business do you have with Miss Daae?''

''Her father was my friend.'' Raoul answers.

''She's grown, hasn't she?''

Raoul nods, and feels confused. This conversation is going nowhere. ''She's very lovely.'' he says after a while.

''You care for her.'' the man remarks.

''Yes, as an uncle. Nothing more than that.'' With that, the conversation is over, and Raoul heads towards the stairs.

5. _Rooftop._

When the stagehand is hanged, Raoul runs to find Christine, to make sure she is alright. Why? Because- no, he cannot think such a thing of her. She finds him, and pulls him towards the stairs. ''Hurry!'' she urges. ''He cannot find us!''

 _Who?_ Raoul wants to ask, but does not. When Christine wants to, she will tell him.

Once they reach the rooftop, Raoul must stop and take a breath, as he is a little tired from running up all those stairs. Then he walks over to Christine. ''Do not be afraid. I'm here.'' She steps closer. He holds out his arms, and she throws her own around him.

It is the sort of thing a uncle would do, he is sure, and he desperately tries to ignore the beating of his own heart.

She pulls away, and he kisses her forehead.

''Take me away from here?'' she asks, and he cannot refuse.

''Of course.''

She tilts her head, looks at him. ''Can I say something?''

''Anything.'' he affirms. He is not prepared for what she does say.

''I love you.'' she says, fingering the edges of his evening jacket. ''I suppose I have always loved you, ever since you rescued my scarf from the sea. I did not think to harbor such feelings for so long, yet it was only when I saw you again at the Hannibal rehearsal that they began again. Please, I don't care what people think, but I believe that a marriage ought to be based on love. Couldn't you-'' she looks at him with those eyes, brown and large like a doe's, ''Couldn't you love me, too?''

Raoul stares at her in shock. ''Christine, for God's sake, do not say such things to me. Please! I could not bear it.'' he steps back from her, and she stares at him. ''I'm much older than you.''

''Aristocratic girls marry men much older than themselves. There's no difference.'' Christine pleads. ''If you cannot love me now, could you try to love me?''

He cannot refuse her any longer. ''Very well, then. We'll have a pretend engagement.''

6. _Masquerade._

Christine must accept the idea of a fake engagement, even though it makes her heart ache.

Still, she laughs with Meg, and they gossip about what the wedding will be like, even though she knows there will be no marriage. Every time she sees him- she thinks of running away, to avoid the heartbreak of it all.

But she does not, and time passes.

There are times when they stand next to each other, and his arm brushes hers or his side touches her own, and he stiffens. She thinks that he might feel something, but the next minute, he is gone.

Her dress for the masquerade is pink silk satin, with a tulle overlay and tiny rosebuds at the neck and sleeve overlay. She is a princess, and Raoul comes as a soldier. It is like the stories, where the knight swears to guard the princess.

Everything is happy, everything is joyful, until the Phantom shows up and Raoul runs off to get his sword, hoping to finish the monster off. But Christine dashes off after him, holding her skirts. 

''Raoul, you shouldn't!'''

''Why?'' he questions, almost furiously. ''You care for him?''

She shakes her head. ''No! I care for _**you.**_ '' Still so stubborn in that one respect. Still so stubborn. She takes his sword away from him, places it carefully on the floor. ''I don't want to see you get hurt.'' she tells him, stands on her tiptoes, and presses her mouth to his. He stands there in shock, and his mind says to pull away, this is wrong-but his heart tells him to kiss her back, to give her what she wants. Give Christine what she wants is what he does, his mouth meeting her own in a gentle need-and it's not enough for a girl who has experienced her first kiss from the man she loves.

Raoul cups his hand to the back of her head, deepens the kiss and his other arm winds around her waist, pulls her closer.

One of her hands presses against the satin of his costume, and she can feel his heart, that beats as fiercely as her own. 

He stops-this is not right, not at all! He pulls away, picks up his sword quickly, even though his hands shake. 

''That will not happen again.'' he says firmly.

7\. _Graveyard._

It is very early in the morning when Christine wakes up, and for a moment she smiles, remembering his mouth on hers, the way he'd kissed her, as if he could not help himself. ''Oh my darling.'' she whispers. ''Oh my dear heart's darling.''

She starts to go back to sleep, but then she hears her Angel's voice again. _Not now._ she thinks. _Not after what happened._ Still, she gets out of bed, and she is halfway down the stairs, passing a sleeping Raoul, when he mutters something in his sleep, and she turns. 

_He cannot have said that._

He says it again.

''Christine, I love you.''

She steps towards his sleeping frame, brushes a few strands of hair out of his face. ''I love you.'' she whispers, and he starts, jerking his head away from the wood. 

''What was that?'' She pulls her hand away, and hurries to the stables to fetch a horse, when he catches up to her. It is most improper, as she is still in her nightgown with a shawl wrapped round her, and he only in a loose shirt and pants, but still, they ought to talk.

''Where are you going?'' he asks, voice still thick with sleep. 

''To the cemetery to visit my father's grave.''

''I'll come with you. Get dressed.'' She hurries back inside and pulls on a black velvet dress and tucks a black scarf into the neck, for it is cold outside. 

She returns, he helps her onto the horse, and they head to the graveyard. She finds her father's grave, whispers a prayer, and places a bouquet of roses on the stone. 

A phantom's plans have been thwarted, and he will not stand for it.


	2. Chapter 2

8\. _Notes Reprise._

After the dreadful rehearsal earlier that morning, Christine flees to the chapel. She can still remember what happened. It had started out normally, the cast singing as best the music they could. Until Piangi had made a mistake in his lines, and after several attempts to correct him, Carlotta had stood up and exclaimed, ''How will anyone know how to sing it? No one will! No one will know if it is right or wrong! No one will know!''

Christine, who had been sitting next to Meg, had giggled, but then then they heard it. They all did. The chorus members all had walked to stand around the piano, which, miraculously, was playing by itself, although Christine suspected it was a trick of the Phantom's. And then they began to sing, and Christine had been so horrified she'd fled.

Raoul, having been informed of what happened by Meg once the chorus had returned to their normal selves, hurries down to the chapel as fast he can. He finds Christine, the poor girl, on the floor, her head in her hands. 

''How are you feeling?'' he questions. 

She looks up at him. ''I'm scared. I keep imagining what the performance could be like, what I know he is capable of-'' she sniffs back a sob. ''I'm so terrified.'' 

He goes over to her, gently lifts her up. ''Don't be afraid. I'm here. Nothing will harm you as long as I'm around.'' he reassures her, embraces her. She pulls away from him, goes over to the window. He follows her, sits down besides her. 

''We ought to break-we ought to break it off.'' she says. ''You know what I mean. The engagement, it's nothing but a sham.''

''We're not going to.''

She looks at him. ''I couldn't force you to marry someone you don't love.'' His heart stops. Does she really think he doesn't care for her? When did he start to care? He can't remember now, as it feels like he's always cared. But, it's more then caring. He reaches out, pulls her onto his lap. 

''Christine, we can't break off the engagement because-''

''Because what?''

He looks up at her face, that sweet, solemn, tear-stained face. ''Because I _**have**_ fallen in love with you. _**I am in** **love with**_ _**you.**_ ''

Christine does not dare to believe it. She cannot believe it. After all this time, her feelings are finally returned at last. He does care, after all. She bends her head down. ''Kiss me.'' she whispers. He gladly obliges, and both hope that this will not be the last kiss they will ever share.

9\. _Don Juan Triumphant._

The performance itself begins with a great deal of apprehension. 

Raoul takes his seat in Box Five, and the opera begins. 

Aminta enters, all sweetness, all innocence. She is the princess of the gypsies, the king's only daughter. When she dances in the square during a festival, Don Juan, the philandering nobleman of the title, sees her, and vows to have her.

He invites her to his house for dinner, and she is delighted to go, but wary, for she has heard of his reputation. Raoul and the audience watch as the tavern owner, a former mistress of Don Juan's, schemes to get him back, and Aminta arrives at the Don's house.

Here is where the seduction scene occurs. Raoul has seen Christine, dear girl, practice it with Piangi. So far, nothing has changed. But here, here something has changed. With Christine, nothing has changed, but it is Don Juan who has changed. Just by listening to his voice, Raoul can tell this is not Piangi. 

It is the Phantom. He has taken the bait. Raoul quickly rushes from his seat and hurries down, into the wings, where he can be on hand if Christine needs him. He watches, as the monster sings to his darling, how his darling realizes just who she is singing with, and finally, how the Phantom proposes to Christine. 

The desperation in the Phantom's voice reminds Raoul of Christine's first declaration of love on the rooftop. The love, and the beginnings of heartbreak. Christine says nothing, but when the Phantom is close enough, she rips off his mask and his wreck of a face is revealed.

10. _Final Lair._

The monster has taken her down to his lair, Christine constantly looking back, hoping Raoul will come to help her.

He does, aided by Meg Giry, who shows him the secret passageway to the Phantom's lair, and hopes that he will return safely with Christine in tow.

He finally reaches the place, where Christine has been forced to change into a wedding-dress. 

She tells the Phantom that she could not love him, that she loves another. Still, he insists, and Christine realizes he is halfway to losing his mind. Raoul calls out from behind the portcullis, calls out, calls her name, and Christine is worried, frightened, and overjoyed at the same time.

''Raoul, please, go!'' she calls to him. ''I do not wish you to be hurt.''

He shakes his head. ''I will not leave till he lets you go.''

Erik yanks on the lever that draws up the portcullis, and Raoul starts towards Christine. This time, he keeps his hand at the level of his eyes-he is not a brash young man any longer, and he remembers Meg Giry's warning- and Erik, realizing that his rival, even at his age, is a force to be reckoned with, lets the two go. 

''Go now!'' he yells out. ''Go now and leave me!'' they hurry to the boat, and Raoul poles the boat away. They hurry through the rooms, and into the hallway, where Christine embraces an anxiously waiting Meg. 

''Hurry, quickly!'' Raoul's carriage waits outside, and he helps Christine into it, and it drives away.

11. _End._

The Phantom is found dead by the gendarmes, and Raoul and Christine are married. It is a small wedding, with few people attending, but Meg is Christine's bridesmaid.

The wedding-night does not happen until some nights after the actual wedding, and they learn to love each other in the way a married couple should do. They are happy together, and a child-their first!-is born in the spring, and they call her Victoire. She has her mother's hair, but the color of her father's, and eyes that are a mix of both parents. She grows up to be a happy child, and when Victoire grows up and falls in love, on her own wedding-day, she is given a portrait of her parents, painted some time before her mother's first pregnancy.

Her parents are happy, smiling. Her mother wears a dress of sky-blue, her hair pinned up, and her father kneels by his wife's side, staring up at her adoringly. Victoire thinks it's romantic, and it, along with Christine's wedding-dress, becomes a family heirloom passed down through the generations, to Victoire's own daughter, to her grandaughter, and so on.


End file.
